The Mystery of the Phantom Web Pages

[FakeBonanza]

Maybe this is overly optimistic but I wonder if the phantom page for Richard Lester is for A Hard Day's Night

You can still get the Canadian release for reasonable prices, but I will warn you that it's 1080i.

A Hard Day's Night seems pretty unlikely. The most likely candidate would be The Knack ...and How to Get it. I could also see it being Petulia.

[FrauBlucher]

The academy premiered a new photochemical restoration of Mr. Smith Goes to Washington four or five years ago for their 1939 festival. Grover Crisp introduced it, iirc. Fucking gorgeous print, the best looking film print I've seen of any feature from the 30s.

That's interesting that SONY is waiting so long as to enter it in the home entertainment market, either through themselves (most likely not) or licensed to a boutique. Maybe it will be part of a bigger set.

[knives]

Maybe this is overly optimistic but I wonder if the phantom page for Richard Lester is for A Hard Day's Night

You can still get the Canadian release for reasonable prices, but I will warn you that it's 1080i.

A Hard Day's Night seems pretty unlikely. The most likely candidate would be The Knack ...and How to Get it. I could also see it being Petulia.

Cuba and his sub movie are also likely candidates.

[ianungstad]

Did a little research. A Hard Day's Night is getting released on blu in June of 2014 for it's 50th anniversary. That's why the dvd has been disappearing around the world. Apparently Apple are not involved. Will be interesting to see if they sell to distributors territory by territory or if they sign with a studio like Warners for worldwide distribution.

[jwd5275]

Maybe this is overly optimistic but I wonder if the phantom page for Richard Lester is for A Hard Day's Night

You can still get the Canadian release for reasonable prices, but I will warn you that it's 1080i.

A Hard Day's Night seems pretty unlikely. The most likely candidate would be The Knack ...and How to Get it. I could also see it being Petulia.

How I Won the War has also been rumored. I know it was released on MGM MOD, but it never made the transition to WAC when they took that over, so I tend to think it is still a possibility.

[ShellOilJunior]

Did a little research. A Hard Day's Night is getting released on blu in June of 2014 for it's 50th anniversary. That's why the dvd has been disappearing around the world. Apparently Apple are not involved. Will be interesting to see if they sell to distributors territory by territory or if they sign with a studio like Warners for worldwide distribution.

Do you have a link for this? I see a blog is reporting it (via the comments section). Others are speculating Let it Be is on the way, too.

[zedz]

When / if Let It Be ever gets released, Apple will be all over it, and there will be media hoopla-a-go-go. I just can't imagine them licensing it to anybody else. That would be like Bizarro World behaviour for them.

[The Elegant Dandy Fop]

If it's anything like Help, The Magical Mystery Tour and Yellow Submarine, it'll probably even get a short theatrical run before the Blu-Ray release.

Let It Be was suppose to be released severally years ago and apparently was okay-ed by Paul McCartney. I know the suppression of it for the last forty years was because of how George Harrison felt about it, but after his death, they finally were prepping a release of it. No clue what's taking them this long to put it out.

[FrauBlucher]

Based on a number of phantom pages from directors who are not big names I think I've found a release that may explain their inclusion. Forever and a Day (1943) RKO pictures was a film with 7 directors listed. They all have phantom pages except for Frank Lloyd. Rene Clair, Victor Saville and Cedric Hardwicke already have credits on their explore pages, where as Edmond Goulding, Robert Stevenson and Herbert Wilcox have empty explore pages.
Here is the plot summary...

Spoiler

During World War II an American travels to Britain to sell an old house near London that belongs to his family. But he meets Susan Trimble who lives in the house and who is strictly against the sale. While they spend the night in an air-raid shelter she tells him the story of the building from it's construction in 1804 until present day.

It definitely sounds like a Criterion type of older film they like to release. I've never seen it. Perhaps someone who has will comment.

[domino harvey]

It was one of the first DVDs Image put out and has been OOP forever, so maybe

[Bando]

If it's anything like Help, The Magical Mystery Tour and Yellow Submarine, it'll probably even get a short theatrical run before the Blu-Ray release.

Let It Be was suppose to be released severally years ago and apparently was okay-ed by Paul McCartney. I know the suppression of it for the last forty years was because of how George Harrison felt about it, but after his death, they finally were prepping a release of it. No clue what's taking them this long to put it out.

I was pretty disappointed with the Magical Mystery Tour theatrical screening I attended. It was quite obviously the blu-ray, because we got to watch the special features right after the film was over, complete with menu navigation. To me, if you're going to do a theatrical run, circulate prints. The whole thing came off as cheeseball for something like the Beatles. As for Let It Be, I'll believe it when I see it. Seems like the "it'll happen next year!" rumors are an annual thing.

As for Richard Lester, I'd really, really welcome a CC release of How I Won the War. Seems like that's a pretty big gap in Beatles-related film releases. Perhaps a side-by-side spine number release with The Family Way for the Paul soundtrack?

[Professor Wagstaff]

With "Thunderbolt and Lightfoot" coming out from Twilight Time, the Clint Eastwood page signalling the Leone trilogy seems more likely.

[ShellOilJunior]

A Saul Turell documentary set is a strong contender for an eclipse set. Two are only available on the Janus 50th box set. So the Valentino error theory may have some validity. However it still doesn't explain all the other odd things there ranging from unlikely (Woody Allen) and highly improbable (GBU) to nigh of impossible (Diva, if it is a StudioCanal / Lionsgate title)

It seems the chances of WA entering the collection is no longer a long shot. If TT is able to get a major work like C&M then anything is possible.

[britcom68]

If Woody Allen still has the power to limit all releases of his films to barebones with no special features (outside of the MGM releases that came with trailer and a short booklet, yippidee-do-dahhh... ) any potential Criterion release would be disappointing if they are not allowed to include any special features (and trailers are not necessarilly *special*). What Criterion could do is give Take the Money and Run a better transfer, yes, sure- and an upgraded picture/sound quality on that film should be a make-or-break deal for any distributor to offer on this title- but what would be the point of then releasing it barebones as a solo spine title if they can get there hands on other Allen films? If Criterion only has the rights and access to offer this one Allen title, then I can understand it getting its own spine number, but if Criterion can get at least two more titles (most likely Love and Death, Tiger Lilly?) why not release them all as an Eclipse set? I know consumers, both here and outside of the hardcore film-fan community, have mixed feelings about the Eclipse line, but if there is no way Allen will allow his films to be released with special features, even via Criterion, then why not have Criterion release TTMaR and one or two other titles as an Eclipse set anyway instead of as separate spine numbers (Eclipse sets do not come with special features allowed anyway). Thoughts?

[ShellOilJunior]

Those films are already available on DVD (and in other regions). An Eclipse set would be superfluous.

[movielocke]

I know special features can drive interest, but I'd be happy to just have the movies, barebones, in 29.95 editions (if those even exist post DF era). I see nothing wrong with getting Allen movies that aren't on blu on blu, as the movie is far more important than features.

[Edwin]

Well, there was a brief press conference from Cannes included as a bonus feature on the Midnight in Paris disc. I know that's nothing to get excited about, but considering Woody Allen releases usually have *only* a trailer, it's a step up. In any case, I could see a Woody Allen movie making its way to Criterion eventually. Almost all of his most popular movies have already been released on BD, so I can't imagine MGM is in too much of a rush to get the other titles out. Licensing one or two to Criterion wouldn't be too hard to imagine. Something like Broadway Danny Rose or Zelig might fit the bill. Maybe Interiors, since I'm sure MGM views that as the one with the least commercial potential.

[Bando]

Considering the special effects pioneered for Zelig has become so commonplace in subsequent films, there's a lot of potential in that one if Criterion could shoehorn some special features onto a release. Maybe put a Woody New Yorker piece or two in the booklet, some pictures, and it's a decent $29.95 price point film.

[bainbridgezu]

New pages:
Sydney Pollack
Lawrence Kasdan

[Moe Dickstein]

Well I've been saying for a couple months what those are for xxx.

[FrauBlucher]

If a director does not have a phantom page, should he/she not be considered as having a film/films getting released by CC, particularly in the near future. Example.. Some folks have suggested that Cristian Mungiu's Beyond the HIlls could be getting a CC release, but he has no phantom page. Is there a correlation?

[swo17]

Yes, there have been a few tragic cases where Criterion had all the contracts signed and extras prepared for a particular release, but then the deal fell through at the last minute when the other party discovered that Criterion had neglected to set up the proper phantom web pages.

[FrauBlucher]

Tragic being an understatement.

[dwk]

I hope someone asks them about the phantom pages, especially the The Good, the Bad, and the Ugly ones.

[ianungstad]

Not happening. I asked James Finn on twitter and he stated flat out that Fox would be releasing a new edition of TGTBTU and not Criterion. It was certainly some bored office drone trying to toy with fans.

Has anyone seen the sell sheets for King of the Hill yet? Or does anyone know if it's Universal proper or Focus Features? IMDB credits Gramercy with the theatrical release so I assume this is the latest release in Criterion's relationship with Focus but I've been hoping that they've picked up some more Universal titles.(Recent releases like The Uninvited; Island of Lost Souls; etc. are titles they've been sitting on for years.)